Coco chanel

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« Fashion is architecture : it is a matter of proportions »,

Coco Chanel

        Although clothing has been going on for thousand years, fashion only started when people got self conscious about what they were wearing. That came from the emergence of several fashion designers, that began to create trends. One of the most famous fashion designer of the 18th century was Gabrielle Chanel, also known as Coco Chanel.

Coco Chanel had a enourmous impact on the fashion design of today and is without a doubt a ground breaking innovator in the field of women’s fashion and a key figure of her time.

She stressed the impact of World War 1 and gived a different aspect to fashion design.

Below we will talk about how Coco Chanel successfully established functionnalism in her brand building.

First we will talk about Coco Chanel’s look. Then, we will show how she established functionnalism in her clothing, and to finish we will compare the two forms of fucntionalism  in her design.

        Gabrielle Chanel, known as Coco Chanel, was born on August 1883 in France, she lost her parents really young and soon had to learn to become Independent. After going to an orphanage she went to a boarding school for woman, experienced a tough and deprived youth that shaped her character for life. She begun her career as a sales assistant, and then moved to Paris with her first lover, where she opened her own shop. Then, she begun to have  interest in women clothing and fashion.

She soon realized that she had something different, something special: that chic qnd easy look and a penchant for minimalism.

In the begining of the 19th century she wished to end the heavy frou-frou style of the Belle époque which was at the time she moved to Paris. To the women of the belle epoque, Chanel’s look seemed kind of unsophisticated, because it was not as « bling » as the trend then.

Her style was inspired by all the mans she was surrounded by, and that helped her in ther ascension. She was a privileged partner of men, being with them as an equal, and she even wanted to surpass them. Coco Chanel was a kind of androgynous feminin women. her look was inspired by workmens, and sailor’s clothes. She would plunder the wardrobe of man she knew for ideas. She liked men, her collections of many affairs was the proof of this. She never forgot that it was men that inspired her sensationnally successful fashion design, with their wardrobes full of knits and tweed, the buttons and braiding of their uniforms. Quality, comfort and the sort of proportions that accentuated the body’s lines without exposing it, these were the foundations of male elegance and Coco Chanel took them for herself and for all women who wanted to live like her.

Coco chanel is what is called a « self-made women ». She created her own legend and look, and became someone with whom women in Europe could identify. She conquered the city of Paris with a simple, chic and functionnal look.

The Chanel look was this simple and chic look that every woman could have.

She enchanted Paris during « Les années folles » and in 1926 she  created the evening uniform (see photo bellow) for the « new woman », who was slim, sporty and boyish. She had cut her hair short at that time.

Chanel piece of art is her life, and her hability of designing. She combined masculine and feminine, thoughness and charm, simplicity and luxury. Today Coco Chanel would probably be called a purist.

Using soft flowing lines, her designs were stripped of all Belle Epoque affectations.[pic 2]

The Chanel look survive all the changing distates of fashion, because of her classical pieces.

In the 70’s  she created a garnement that will forever carry her name, something that no couturier has managed before or since.

The « chanel » a simple suit made of tweed (see photo on the right), with the skrit covering the knees. To this day it stands as a symbol of true elegance.[pic 3]

The look of the decade : Coco chanel’s look, had a big contribution to what is today the classic ladies style. Giving her strong and lasting influence on the image of the modern woman and on womens fashion in general.

From the begining the foundation of the chanel look was functionality in both it literal and figurative senses.

        The war diverted women’s from fashion, but after war morals had changed, and so had clothes. Womans wanted to enjoy themselves, they had become emancipated, and the fashion industry needed new ideas and new customers. The clothes of La belle époque were hardly suitable for helping woman overcome the passivity they had in society, because they couldn’t really do anything in those outfits. Her plans was to remove the corsets that were still in womens minds. She was a designer in the modern sense, she wanted clothes to fit with womens lifestyles.

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